As the winter evening descends upon Long Island, the sunset resembles honey and wine trickling down from celestial trees, gently falling from the azure sky until forest bathes in its hues, their lush shadows crisping at the edges, punctuated by the shrill cries of returning wild ducks.
Fishermen start packing their gear meticulously, then laden with gear, they embark on their journey home.
Shiller first puts the live fish and a pile of squid into the water tank, then places the dead fish and sliced meat along with other ingredients into an insulated box filled with ice packs. He packs up his fishing rod, folds the chair, and walks forward, balancing gear in each hand.
Loki, arriving last and carrying the fewest items, couldn't help but turn her head and say with a laugh, "I've never pictured you shopping and cooking after work, Shiller."
"I can cook, but I usually don't do the shopping." Shiller shrugs lightly, turning to Natasha he says: "After all, as soon as I got to New York, I was targeted by S.H.I.E.L.D. They voluntarily took over my clothing, food, shelter, and transportation."
"Back then Nick wanted you to graze and milk the cows yourself, but you quickly gave him a reality check with your salary bill," Natasha chuckled, also moving forward burdened with packages.
As the sun's lustrous glow hits the ice, the thin mist that rose during the day from the heat dissipates, causing the ice to glisten.
Beyond the tumult of the battlefield, without the hustle and seriousness of mundane affairs, the elongated shadows cast by the setting sun act like a sculptor's chisel carving and chipping away at their accumulated boredom and worries.
They return to the cabin by the lake. Nick and Steve, who are closest to the lodge, are starting to set up the canvas, while Charles and Erik are searching for something among the bushes.
"I hope these ladies haven't slowed you down, Shiller. Professor Charles said he spotted wild ducks in the bush. If we're lucky, we might be eating wild duck eggs," Steve mentions.
"You underestimate how nimble they are." Shiller puts his gear down one by one on arriving, looks at Gwen Spiderman who had dumped her belongings all at once on the stone beach in front of the door, and shakes his head, "Just a little impatient. Maybe it's because she's hungry."
"Then we ought to step up and act like gentlemen," Steve helps Nick secure the stake with another piece of wood and says, "Doctor, could you check the menu for us? So even if we're doing multiple things simultaneously, we won't end up with nothing to eat."
"Of course, I'll call Gwen. She's eager to do some hard work that'd help her avoid Professor Charles's inquiries. Charles is currently busy trying to bring all the Spider Men to his academy."
Shiller changes into his wading boots at home and walks to the nearby reed marsh. He calls back Gwen Spiderman, who was taking photos there, then goes to find Charles and the others in the bush behind the cabin.
Shiller looks around, not seeing Ivan, he asks Charles, "Where's your other team member?"
"He's preparing the charcoal," Charles swings his head left to right, scouring the bush for footprints while explaining, "Getting the barbecue ready is a lot fussier than just lighting a fire. The charcoal has to burn to just the right degree before it can be put in the grill. Otherwise, a fire might break out and burn everything to a crisp."
"Did I tell you I brought an induction cooker? Maybe we could use it to heat vegetables or make pancakes, but the cabin isn't wired to the electric line outside. Can anyone help with this?" Shiller removes his gloves while asking.
"I'll go with you. It's unrealistic to find a wild duck here." Erik turns towards the cabin. Still buoyant, Charles waves to them and adds, "You go on. I am certain I spotted the little ones' footprints here. I will surely find their nest so we can have hot, freshly-cooked eggs."
Walking toward the cabin with Shiller, Erik grumbles, "He's always like this, as pure-hearted as a child, nursing impractical fantasies while assuming they're amusing."
"Perhaps for him, they really are amusing."
Erik looks at Shiller somewhat surprised. Shiller, as if understanding their conversation, steps unevenly in the grass hovel, lowers his head and muses, "What? Are you disoriented because I didn't flash a professional smile and explain to you in detail from a psychological perspective why Charles finds this amusing?"
"I thought you were a doctor round the clock."
"Perhaps, once upon a time." Shiller's answer is equally terse – he offers no explanation. Erik timely remarks, "That's good. Charles has this condition where he incessantly explains everything to everyone. He might truly believe there are no absolute fools in this world."
They walk around to the back of the house. Erik, wearing gloves, caresses the rosebush on the cabin's outer side, then looking up at the rooftop, says thoughtfully, "This is your classic fisherman's hut, but the owner didn't use a generator. He presumably tied into the electrical grid of the street lamps on the adjacent road."
"You mean he's siphoning off electricity?"
"Possibly, but I don't think it's stealing. He still pays a hefty property tax for the place, but gets no municipal benefits. This is something he is entitled to."
What surprised Erik slightly was that Schiller still didn't say anything, he simply nodded and asked, "So, is there a way to connect an external line so that we can use appliances normally outside the house?"
Erik also took off his gloves, looked around, and then said, "There's an underground warehouse here, let's go see if there's any cable that we can use, I think there should be."
Schiller knew why he suggested this, because if the owner of the house was using the cable to steal electricity, he certainly wouldn't have prepared just enough wire. If any was left, it would most likely be stored in the warehouse.
Erik opened the door to the basement, kicked open the slightly rusty door with his boot, Schiller was pulling the heavy basement door, and Erik climbed down the ladder.
After a while, a roll of cable was thrown up, and then Erik climbed back up. He began to look for a connection point around the house. Soon, he and Schiller found the electrical box that the homeowner had used to modify the line, buried at the base of the east side wall of the house.
Erik skilfully connected the wires in just a few moves, Schiller stood by and watched in astonishment, "I didn't expect your electrician skills to be this proficient."
"You think I am just a brat who can't even eat without his mutant ability?" Erik snorted coldly, keeping busy with his task, "During the time I was being hunted, I've done all sorts of jobs—electrician, roofer, mover, milkman, even a dental apprentice, I've repaired boat engines, and even been a choir teacher at the church."
"You can sing?"
"A bit, but not much, a Spaniard taught me the basics of recitative, then when I went into exile in Italy, a lady who loves opera introduced me to a teacher."
Erik's narration was always flat and direct, without any adjectives, it would even seems rather dry in a police report, but because of the richness of the content, it always brings to mind the slightly grey-toned days.
By the time the circuit was completely set up, it was getting dark. Erik, who had returned to the camp, looked in surprise at the wild duck egg in Charles' hand. Charles, like a child who had received a new toy, showed off his findings to his old friend.
"I just looked at it with a flashlight, there are two fertilized eggs inside, so we won't eat these two, but incubate them instead, I have long needed a few small animals to teach the children of Xavier's School for Gifted Youngsters about life."
Erik seemed suddenly angry, he pulled off his newly worn gloves a little forcefully and said, "Yes, show them how loving you are, take the little animals away from their mother, then put them in a cage and educate them."
"Hey, how can you talk to Principal Charles like that?" Gwen Spiderman, who came over, stared at the back of Erik leaving, seeming quite indignant. However, Charles smiled at her and said, "Don't be angry, Gwen, is it time for dinner?"
"No, Nick asked me to come over and ask Principal Schiller if he has decided on a menu, he has been gone for a long time without bringing back any news, we are all a little worried about him."
"I am working on that, miss, but you have to tell me what you want to eat and what you can provide first, otherwise you might end up flying into the reed swamp and no one will be able to find you."
Gwen Spiderman twirled her eyes thoughtfully and said, "I don't have anything special I want to eat, the heaps of snacks I bought are enough to fill my stomach... alright, don't look at me like that, I know I should eat less junk food, so, fried fish?"
Charles shook his head, apparently thinking that wasn't much healthier either, but Schiller nodded. He patted Gwen Spiderman on the back and told her to turn around, and said to her, "Go check if the charcoal is ready. Go on."
Gwen Spiderman was somewhat bewildered to be driven out of Schiller's and Charles' conversation, she shook her head and didn't take it to heart.
But when Gwen Spiderman rounded the house, she thought she understood Schiller's meaning. At that moment, Ivan and Natasha, the two Russians, were fussing with the charcoal for the barbecue.
Gwen Spiderman glanced around and noticed that no one else was around, so she dashed towards where the two were working in three quick steps, stopping abruptly, her hand covering her mouth as she coughed lightly, and said to Ivan, "Uh, Nick and the others are looking for you."
Ivan looked a little puzzled as he glanced in the distance, but Gwen Spiderman had already wedged herself between the two of them and pushed Ivan out, saying, "Just go over there, I can take care of this."
Ivan looked down at the almost ready charcoal and stood up, dusting off the ashes from his trousers before walking off in the distance.
"What's wrong, Gwen?" Natasha, who was turning the charcoal on the ground, raised her head in surprise and asked Gwen Spiderman.
"Nothing, I just came from Doctor Schiller, he asked me to make sure the charcoal is ready in time." Gwen Spiderman winked at Natasha.
Immediately, Natasha's heart was filled with alarm. She stared at Gwen's face for a moment, seemingly making sure that clear innocence wasn't corrupted. While Gwen Spiderman observed Natasha's slightly nervous expression, thinking to herself "as I thought".